Whatever Happened to Worship?
It is amazing that even though A. W. Tozer died in 1963, this book is so relevant for 2006. He examines the churches of America and concludes that the church is “missing the genuine and sacred offering of ourselves and our worship to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” He compares the church of his time to the Laodicean church in Revelation. This was a church of great abundance, except for abundance in Christ. Some particular sins of the church in his time were lack of love for liberal believers which could be seen even by unbelievers. He desired the church to be “led by the Spirit of God” and for the church to “show forth the love of God this world needs,” in order to become “winsome saints.” He explains that becoming winsome is a result of understanding who God is. One reason the church is not winsome is because pastors are preaching a false gospel to their congregations. It is the nature and perfections of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit that should be preeminent in preaching. He observes that even though the church is concerned with serving God, he is of the “opinion that we (the church) should not be concerned about working for God until we have the meaning and delight of worshipping Him.” The church of his time was too preoccupied with business (having a corporate God and so he writes, “God is trying to call us back to that for which He created us—to worship and enjoy him forever. Tozer responds to the person who does not believe the importance of worship by writing, “I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven.” The church of his day had problems such as pride over those in the church who would express themselves audibly in worship to God. And yet some of these divisive members of the church are the ones making church government decisions. Tozer pleads with the people of his day again by writing, “Oh, brother or sister, God calls us to worship, but in many instances we are in entertainment, just running a poor second to the theaters.” This is not an indictment to become better at reaching the culture, but an exhortation to become more concerned with the understanding of who God is. It is true; how can the church of Christ boast in God if they don’t even know Him. Tozer correlates worshipping God in Spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24) to Christ’s promise of the Holy Spirit to the disciples and to all believers (John 14:26). Then Tozer begins to discuss how the fear of God comprises what a worshipper of God is. The fear of God is a holy fear by which the believer knows the indwelling Divine and responds in awe, reverence, and delight, even in worship to God in His special presence in the church. This is what is lacking in the church. In fact I perceive that all of the above is a prophetic synopsis of what the church of today struggles with. The church needs to ballast itself to rejoicing in the truth with fear and trembling.
So here's my question, what is meant by "in spirit and in truth" or "in Spirit and in truth"John 4:24
2 Comments:
Yes. What was it called when Israel worshipped God falsely? syncretism or "offering strange fire" as Buroughs would put it in Gospel Worship. In regards to the present sensuality, we can observe that Israel did what was right.........what was right in their OWN eyes. Isn't interesting that God would have the authors of the OT phrase that in a way of using a sense as a metaphor. "Their own eyes" meant their saw rightness apart from Adonai. (This brings a side question, but did the Israelites still have a dead soul? The Holy Spirit didn't regenerate them. How does that work if you are a trichotomist.) But back to sensuality, I assume that you are referring to the meaning of the word by-that which is able to be percieved of the senses and put into the church, I assume you mean that the church is placing an emphasis on what one can sense, as oppossed to living by faith in God. You percieve the church is more experiental than cognitive. Or maybe we need to experience God, but we aren't experiencing the true God. Maybe the church needs to incline all of its senses to God. How about "taste and see that the Lord is good. Psalm" Christ says drink of the water I give you and you will thirst no more. As the deer pants after the water brook, so may heart pants after you, O God. Am I wrong or is there spiritual sensuality, where we
incline ourselves(mind, soul, spirit) to worship God even in our senses. But as You mentioned, we must be careful to not trivialize who God is as we regard spiritual truth in light of our senses. Is there a way not to "offer strange
fire." Sure, we, the church, must become knowledgeable of what fire God does recieve, found in His Word. We, the church, must look to the Bible for illustrations for how to incline our senses to spiritual truth. It it good that you brough up this question. After reading the screwtape letters, I was reminded that man does not create evil, but man perverts that which is good. Trivializing spiritual truth is a perversion of the truth. Sensuality maybe a good thing. I think it might be so closely related to the word sexuality. This word is even good, too. I speculate that is good because God created sex for within the confines of marriage. But back to sensuality, I do this words are very important. I think it is good to remember many words that are percieved as "bad" are perversions of good, for e.g., how about intoxication or spiritual intoxication. How about sensuality? We, as humans are so unoriginal, since we can't create we pervert (philosophically is this correct, we can compose, we cannot create). Maybe we can start thinking about how sensuality is a part of God. Is it a perfection? Did Jesus Christ have senses? Maybe I am totally off and will have to respond differently later but here's what I have for now.
By
Semitikstallion, at 7:24 PM
semitikstallion, are you catania?
By
Matt H, at 11:46 AM
Post a Comment
<< Home